Panchkula: Auto driver killed in second hit-and-run mishap in a week
The victim’s son told Panchkula police that he had borrowed the auto-rickshaw from a friend to earn a living by selling vegetables in nearby villages
In the second fatal hit-and-run accident within a week, a 45-year-old vegetable vendor was killed after a speeding car rammed into his auto-rickshaw near Kot Billa village on the Barwala route on Sunday evening.
The victim, Shiv Charan, hailed from Uttar Pradesh and was currently living in the Nada Sahib Gurudwara area.
His son Jitendra told police that Charan had borrowed the auto-rickshaw from a friend to earn a living by selling vegetables in nearby villages. On Sunday morning, he had left home to sell produce in Barwala, but did not return home as usual. Concerned family members began searching for him, only to receive a late-night call about his accident around 11.50 pm.
Upon reaching the civil hospital in Panchkula’s Sector 6, Jitendra and his younger brother, Suresh, were informed that their father had succumbed to his injuries. The accident report filed by the family stated that Shiv Charan was driving in his lane when the incident occurred around 6.30 pm.
A speeding car, bearing a Chandigarh number, allegedly struck Charan’s auto-rickshaw from behind. The impact of the collision caused the auto to crash into roadside railings, leading to multiple injuries, including severe chest trauma and fractures.
Despite efforts by bystanders to rush Charan to the hospital, he was declared dead upon arrival. Police have booked the unidentified car driver, who fled the scene, under Sections 281 and 106 (1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
There has been a spate of fatal hit-and-run accidents in Panchkula recently. On November 4, a 37-year-old man tragically lost his life while riding his motorcycle near the Zirakpur checkpoint on VIP Road after being struck by an unidentified vehicle, which immediately fled the scene.
This incident followed two hit-and-run cases in Panchkula on October 27. In one, 58-year-old Gurudas Singh was fatally hit by a school van while riding his scooter. In another, a 36-year-old cafe worker died after a speeding Thar rammed into his motorcycle, leaving him critically injured and ultimately leading to his death.
